Reports: Games

Browse all of our reports, featuring our analysts' expert insights and analysis of audience segmentation, emerging trends and technologies, value chains, market shares, predictions and more – backed by our proprietary survey data and bespoke models & forecasts. Become a subscriber to get new ones every month, or just pick one to get started.

Cover image for Defining entertainment superfans

Defining entertainment superfans
Characteristics, categories, and commercial impact

Olivia Jones and Laura Fisher

15 Sep 2025

France Australia Spotify

Superfans represent a highly valuable yet consistently underleveraged audience segment for the entertainment industry. What drives this disconnect is the fact that – despite frequent anecdotal use of the term – a standardised, empirical definition remains absent, preventing companies from systematically identifying, nurturing, and monetising th...

Cover image for Beyond the screen

Beyond the screen
How and why gaming merch and collectibles fuel fandom

Brandon Sutton

3 Sep 2025

Marketing Digital Fandom

The physical gaming merchandise and collectibles market is a multibillion-dollar industry that serves as both organic marketing and a way to strengthen community engagement. However, the space has grown increasingly complex due to a surge in fan-made merch, a crowded field of game properties, and economic pressures like the rising cost of living.

Cover image for The new Hollywood

The new Hollywood
Tactics for YouTube’s TV takeover

Ben Woods

26 Aug 2025

Creators Streaming YouTube

YouTube is consolidating its takeover of the living room TV set. What began in the US is now becoming a global phenomenon. With younger audiences increasingly spending more time watching social video on the TV, broadcasters and streaming TV services must find a way to respond.

Cover image for Is in-game advertising the next frontier for PC and console games?

Is in-game advertising the next frontier for PC and console games?

Rhys Elliott

15 Jul 2025

Apple YouTube Netflix

In-game advertising (IGA) in AAA console and PC titles is experiencing a resurgence. Advancements in technology, shifting consumer behaviours, evolving monetisation strategies, and a now-mature games market have reignited interest. With AAA publishers adopting free-to-play models and hybrid monetisation – mirroring mobile gaming’s success – a...

Cover image for Flipping the script

Flipping the script
Game IP transmedia needs to evolve

Rhys Elliott

9 May 2025

Amazon Netflix Xbox

The entertainment landscape is changing. As superhero fatigue sets in, game IP is now dominating screens, from HBO’s The Last of Us to the Minecraft movie. Unlike movie trends (Westerns, superhero movies), the game-to-movie trend is here to stay, as the games market is a cross-genre treasure trove of beloved IP and fandom, with new IP arriving fr...

Cover image for UK media consumption Q4 2024

UK media consumption Q4 2024
A mature market with niche growth prospects

Laura Fisher

23 Apr 2025

Streaming Streaming Music US

This report presents MIDiA consumer entertainment data across media, music, audio, and games. Key data and insights: Time spent and weekly active users (by format and platform)for streaming music, podcasts, social media, games consoles and more. All data refers to the UK only (n = 1,000) except for ‘all-country average’ referring to the weighte...

Cover image for Pixels to playlists

Pixels to playlists
Music preferences and behaviours of gamers

Rhys Elliott

28 Mar 2025

Innovation Labels US

The global games industry is a $236.9 billion behemoth. It now rivals film, television, and music combined in terms of revenues and is a cultural driver. Yet, for music companies, labels, and platforms, gaming represents more than a parallel market: it is agateway to the world’s most engaged, tech-savvy, and monetisable audience.

Cover image for MIDiA's gamer segmentation

MIDiA's gamer segmentation
Prioritise why – not just how – players engage with games

Rhys Elliott

25 Feb 2025

Amazon Netflix Gaming

The games landscape is more dynamic and interconnected than ever, demanding a deeper understanding of why players engage with games – not just how. We are proud to introduce MIDiA’s gamer segmentation, which focuses on motivations, attitudes, and underlying reasons behind gaming behaviours.

Cover image for MIDiA Research global games forecasts 2025–2031

MIDiA Research global games forecasts 2025–2031
The market is mature, so double-digit growth is a fantasy

Perry Gresham, Mark Qi and Rhys Elliott

30 Jan 2025

US Global Gaming

Interested in ' MIDiA Research global games forecasts 2025–2031' ? Access the free version here . Recent years have been tough for the games market. Like many industries, gaming overextended itself following the black swan event that was the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cover image for What gamers really think about gen AI in games

What gamers really think about gen AI in games
Apathy, not outrage

Rhys Elliott

23 Dec 2024

Audience Insight

Game development budgets have spiralled out of control, leading game executives to cut costs and streamline their game development processes. It is no secret that generative AI (gen AI) is the tech industry’s current buzzword, but its potential is still disputed despite the hype.

Cover image for The case for in-game video platforms

The case for in-game video platforms
Closing the direct-to-consumer gap

Karol Severin

29 Nov 2024

Product Strategy

Game publishers have long used third-party video platforms like Twitch and YouTube as a springboard to promote their games. Meanwhile, Twitch and YouTube get advertising and creator-driven revenues in return. The relationship has largely been reciprocal and beneficial for both parties.

Cover image for The single-player opportunity

The single-player opportunity
Course correcting from a red to blue ocean

Rhys Elliott

30 Sep 2024

YouTube Netflix Xbox

The AAA PC and console games market is facing growth issues, money is more expensive, and developers are facing pressure to become leaner, more profitable, and take fewer risks. Many game makers, including those that found initial success in single player, have been chasing the live-service trend.

Cover image for The ‘why’ and ‘what’ behind in-game spending

The ‘why’ and ‘what’ behind in-game spending

Karol Severin

29 Aug 2024

Audience Insight

As the games industry matures and global games revenue growth slows down, in-game spending will remain one of the industry’s key growth drivers. Historically, in-game spending was mostly associated with advantage-gaining items. In 2024 however, cosmetic in-game items account for the majority of in-game spending and will be increasing their share ...

Cover image for High tide raises all ships

High tide raises all ships
Leveraging the cultural tidal wave of Grand Theft Auto VI

Rhys Elliott

30 Jul 2024

Audience Insight

Grand Theft Auto VI ( GTA 6 ), due to be released in autumn 2025, is on track to be one of the biggest entertainment launches of all time. It will capture a significant amount of consumer attention. Marketers in and outside of the gaming industry have a choice –– either resist and face the increased challenge of capturing consumer attention dur...

Cover image for Bigger is not always better

Bigger is not always better
Premium gaming’s AA opportunity

Rhys Elliott

9 Jul 2024

Business Strategy

Following the post-pandemic slowdown of global games revenue growth, cost-cutting measures are now in full force. However, games continue to grow in scope and length with budgets often exceeding hundreds of millions of dollars, while growth and profitability are increasingly challenging to achieve.

Cover image for Gamers

Gamers
A cross-entertainment summary

Karol Severin

18 Jun 2024

Business Strategy

This report presents the key figures, behaviors, and preferences of gamers across entertainment. Graphics in this report show selected gamer segments, compared to relevant consumer segments across entertainment as appropriate. An accompanying Excel file provides country-by-country figures and data for 60+ additional gamer segments, including by gam...

Cover image for Golden years, golden opportunity

Golden years, golden opportunity
Older gamers are a key growth opportunity in a challenging games market

Rhys Elliott

28 May 2024

Audience Insight

Unlike in the past, gamers are now sticking with games through adulthood and into old age, leading to a growing segment of older gamers. Older gamers are a valuable segment posing a key growth opportunity for games companies in a stagnant market. Yet, most game makers do not currently cater to older gamers.

Cover image for Gamers' time

Gamers' time
Where it is and how to get it

Karol Severin

16 Apr 2024

Business Strategy Product Strategy

With the attention economy saturated, there is next to no incremental entertainment time up for grabs. This comes precisely at a time when more games depend on growing time spent. As games are only the fifth most consumed entertainment activity among PC and console gamers, the path for games to meaningfully grow time spent is to absorb consumers’...

Cover image for Games subscription user deep dive

Games subscription user deep dive
More is more

Karol Severin

28 Feb 2024

Audience Insight

Games subscriptions are playing an increasingly important role in the distribution section of the games industry’s value chain. A growing number of developers, therefore, must think through whether to partner with subscription services and, if so, which ones.

Cover image for Profiling gamers by platform

Profiling gamers by platform

Karol Severin

21 Dec 2023

Audience Insight

This report presents key metrics and consumer insights regarding mobile gamers, console gamers, and computer gamers. It is targeted to help investors, distributors, developers, and publishers understand the nuances and commonalities between these three segments.

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